Winners of Asthma Foundation Achievers' Awards celebrate

The
challenges of living with asthma and other respiratory
conditions will come into sharp focus at the Asthma
Foundation Achievers' Awards ceremony hosted by the Governor
General at Government House. Six outstanding achievers, from
a 10-year-old girl, a marathon- running 76-year-old, to a
young woman who has set up a Foundation to support those
with bronchiectasis, will be honoured at the dinner in front
of 120 guests on the 13th March.

The Achievers' Awards
acknowledge and celebrate New Zealanders with respiratory
conditions who achieve great successes in their lives
despite the challenges their conditions bring.

Managing
your respiratory condition can be the difference between
letting it dominate your life, or living a healthy life and
achieving your goals.

That's the powerful message that
comes through loud and clear when you look at the inspiring
New Zealanders who have been selected for these awards. They
are:• A young girl from Gisborne who has had many
hospital stays but still represents her school at waka ama,
ripper rugby and athletics• An Ashburton, young award
winning musician who uses his passion for music and singing
to build up his lungs and control his asthma.• A
76-year-old mum from Auckland who has chalked up nine
marathons and 100 half marathons to stay fit since her 47
year old sister died of an asthma attack.• A
Dargaville woman who wanted to make a difference by
producing a resource book for those with COPD, even though
she has only 30% normal lung function.• A Wellington
community-minded young woman who has to make every day
count.• A Northland high achiever who wants to leave a
legacy of hope for those with bronchiectasis in New
Zealand.

Tomairangi
Pihema-Brown, Asthma 5-12 Category,
GisborneTomairangi is a brave, strong and resilient
10-year-old girl. She is a regular in the Children's Ward at
Gisborne Hospital, spending seven days in hospital in
January alone. She has an active input into her asthma plan
and adheres to it as necessary. She plays netball, loves
music and has represented her school at waka ama, ripper
rugby and athletics - she never uses her asthma as an excuse
to not give something a go. Tomairangi faces challenges head
on, is able to identify trouble spots and has developed
strategies to overcome them. Her resilience, active
management of her condition and quiet determination to get
on with life despite the challenges of her condition make
her a deserving winner of this award.

Liam
Kennedy-Clark, Asthma 13-18 Category, Ashburton'A
brave go getter' was the description of the judges. Liam has
struggled with his health from the very start but has gone
on to pursue his passion - singing. In 2013 Liam won the NZ
Gold Guitar Awards (intermediate age), he made it through to
the top 24 of NZ X-Factor and was a solo performer in
Coca-Cola Christmas in the Park. He was also named the
Aristocrat Entertainer of the Year (Junior) at the Tamworth
Country Music Festival – the largest in Australasia. Liam
identified early on that he needed to 'build up' his lungs
in order to help his asthma; he achieved this by learning to
play the trumpet. He uses his preventer inhaler as
prescribed and tries his best to avoid his many triggers.
Watch out for this young man in the future; Liam appears to
know what he wants and doesn't stop until he gets it. The
challenges of having asthma will not hold him back from
achieving his dreams.

Jo Turner, Asthma Adult Category,
AucklandJo knows from personal experience that
asthma can kill. She lost her sister Betty to asthma when
she was only 47. In 1983 Jo joined the Auckland YMCA
Marathon Club to help with her asthma; her good management
meant she was able to participate in all events. Jo has run
over 100 half marathons and nine marathons, including New
York twice and London. Jo also cared for her late husband
who had COPD. Being a full-time primary caregiver meant Jo
couldn't afford to become ill so it was important to keep as
healthy as possible. Jo keeps her asthma closely monitored
with the help of her GP and continues to keep fit so she can
still participate in these many half marathon events. The
judges and her sons agree, we can all learn a thing or two
from this fit 76-year-old!

Carol Cooper-Taylor, COPD
Category, DargavilleEnthusiastic and community
minded, Carol has been the driving force behind the recently
developed book 'Don't Forget to Breathe'. Carol's own
experience with COPD started this project as she realised
there wasn't a lot of information available for coping with
COPD. Carol's COPD means she has only 30% normal lung
capacity so at times even holding a conversation is
difficult. Carol cajoled, persuaded and convinced a
registered nurse and a physiotherapist to put two years of
their time, and hers, into writing down their extensive
respiratory knowledge. She is proud that the free book has
been downloaded over 2,000 times in five months. Carol has
also developed the website and facebook account for the book
and has done this with no expectations for herself. Carol's
ongoing commitment to completing the book is to be
applauded; this resource will help those with COPD to better
manage and understand their condition so they too can live
as full a life as possible.

Nicole Doriguzzi, Other
Respiratory Condition, WellingtonThe Other
Respiratory Conditions category is for people with
respiratory conditions other than asthma and
COPD.Nicole stole the judges' hearts. Nicole was
born with cystic fibrosis, which makes breathing and keeping
weight on a challenge. From a young age she took control of
organising her many, many medications. Nicole is incredibly
athletic, taking her two dogs running for two hours each day
as well as playing netball, soccer and biking. Nicole has
gone out of her way to follow her passion and love of
animals, and she lives her life to the fullest, as she knows
that every day counts. She is a caring giving person who
shares her free time willingly. As well as working
part-time, Nicole volunteers as the secretary for Cystic
Fibrosis Wellington and volunteers for the SPCA. She
understands her condition and does everything within her
power to stay fit and healthy. Nicole lets nothing stop her
and she lives her life to the fullest despite the many
challenges she faces every day.

Esther Jordan Muriwai,
Cody Forbes Award for Courage, WhangareiThe Cody
Forbes Award was named after a former Supreme Achiever with
Cystic Fibrosis who died shortly after his 16th
birthday.

Esther is a fabulous young woman who lives
every moment to its fullest. She was diagnosed with
bronchiectasis at the age of eight and has spent much of her
life in hospital. In all her young years Esther has shown
courage and tenacity in the face of a challenging
respiratory condition. An example of this is when Esther
completed her Bachelor of Māori studies. Due to her health
she completed one paper at time, taking over five years.
This is a testament to her will and inner strength to
complete tasks she sets herself. When thinking about her
purpose in life Esther decided on two goals: she wanted to
revitalise te reo and she wanted it to be different for
others with bronchiectasis. In true Esther style she aimed
high and worked hard to form the Bronchiectasis Foundation
to provide education about this devastating condition. Dr
Lance O'Sullivan, recent winner of the New Zealander of the
Year title, is supporting the development of a draft
constitution. Esther has also founded the Northland
Bronchiectasis Support Group and mentors young people with
the condition. Esther is a fluent te reo speaker who spoke
from the heart about what it means to her to be Māori in
the Miss Aotearoa New Zealand contest. Entering the
competition was a courageous step for a shy girl from
Northland. Esther was first runner-up. Esther has also
translated a resource book into Māori for the Whangarei
Children's Ward and wishes to do more of this in the future.
Health willing, Esther has many plans and goals for the
future. Esther says "you have to take what your challenge is
and use the wisdom gained from it to get on with life"; this
takes courage and is the definition of a true
achiever.

About the Asthma FoundationThe Asthma
Foundation is New Zealand's sector authority on asthma and
other respiratory illnesses. We advocate to government and
raise awareness of respiratory illnesses, fund research for
better treatments and educate on best practice. We provide
resources on our website and support our affiliated asthma
societies and trusts in providing education, support and
advice. For more information, visit the Asthma Foundation's
website www.asthmafoundation.org.nz.

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